The next morning, after a long, sleepless night of binge-watching second-hand maintenance tutorials, I squatted beside the gaping hole in the protective net. One hand clutched a roll of insulating tape I'd bought from the local junk market; the other braced me against the metal frame.
Across the pool, Squirtle was directing the MK-II maintenance robot to haul a coil of rusty wire. His short claws waved in the air with all the authority of a symphony conductor—if that conductor was two feet tall, blue, and occasionally scratched his head mid-performance.
[BEEP—]
The sudden system alert almost sent me tumbling into the pool. Nothing should have been triggering a prompt right now. My eyes darted to the translucent light-blue panel floating over the net.
[Special Event]: Uninvited Guests (Duration: 30 minutes)
[Recommended Preparation]: At least 2 purple entries / 1 gold entry
[Reward]: Unknown
My pupils tightened. "System… you've got to be kidding me. We don't even have decent protection right now! And you're throwing us straight into a city defense mission?"
The pool water gave a sudden lurch, sloshing up the sides. In the corner of my interface, a tiny radar flickered into existence, its single scarlet dot moving toward us at alarming speed—three kilometers and closing fast.
I turned to Squirtle. "Forget patching the net. Just… use one of your skills. Maybe we can buy time."
He gripped a wrench in his tiny hands, fired a Water Gun, and—rather than repairing anything—blasted the recently fixed shower heads. They spun on their mounts, spraying wildly until they formed a crooked "SOS" pattern across the netting.
I dragged a palm down my face. "We're not stranded on an island, Squirtle. We don't need to signal passing airplanes!"
Knowing we couldn't possibly win, I scooped him up. Survival first. Land could be rebuilt; people couldn't. That was my logic, anyway.
Just as we reached the edge of the training grounds, the radar shrieked. A bright red warning exploded in my vision:
[Mythical-level fluctuation detected!]
"Oh no."
A blast of scorching air slammed into us. The rusty sheet-metal roof peeled away like a tin can lid, and from the clouds of whipping tarps descended a sleek, crystal-red dragon-like Pokémon, golden data-like lines flowing along its body.
"Latias?" My voice cracked in disbelief.
Before I could blink, a purple energy sphere hurtled toward it. Latias spun midair, forming a polygonal barrier with a flick of her wingtips. The energy slammed into it, exploding into violet plasma that charred the MK-II robot into a twisted black husk.
The system dutifully supplied the analysis: Psyshock.
[BEEP—]
[System Gift: Ancient Device (Damage 97%)]
[Recommended: Activate immediately]
Squirtle tugged urgently on my leg, pointing to the southeast corner. The old locker there was rattling like it was about to burst, flinging out the random junk stored inside.
"That's where it is?!" I shouted, breaking into a run. "You could've spawned it next to me, but no—you make me run across the battlefield!"
I slapped my hand onto the rusty console embedded in the locker.
—Vrrrm!
The pool's floor rumbled. A massive ring-shaped device rose from beneath the water, hexagonal crystals snapping into place to form a shimmering force field around the entire gym. Outside, the world muted—the blasts became distant thumps, and every hit against the shield sent ripples racing across its surface like spiderweb cracks in glass.
My jaw dropped. "An S-class training ground force field? Here?"
Only the highest-tier facilities had this kind of protection. And now it was mine—well, for thirty minutes, apparently.
For a brief, surreal moment, Squirtle and I stood together, watching "silent fireworks" bloom against the sky. The danger still loomed, but inside the shield, it felt almost peaceful.
[BEEP—]
[Special Event]: End
[Host Status]: Alive
[Rewards being distributed…]
[Reward]: Unknown
I groaned. "Unknown reward? That's just the loot-box equivalent of getting a soda cap that says 'Better luck next time'."
The barrier shimmered, then began to dissolve. Blue motes of light floated away like dust in sunlight.
A click sounded from within the locker. Peeling away warped layers of packaging, I uncovered a prismatic crystal etched with faint, shifting data patterns.
[Ancient Guardian Token Detected (Damaged)]
[First Stage Reward: Entry Synthesis Function Unlocked]
I slipped the crystal into my pocket. "Not bad… though it still feels like the system's palming off a freebie from a supermarket promotion."
When I looked up, Latias was already a streak of red light in the distance. I caught only the afterimage gliding across the pool, leaving a rainbow halo in the sunset.
"Wait!" I bolted for the entrance, but all that remained were a few delicate crystal feathers drifting down. They shattered on impact, scattering into golden motes that winked out before touching the ground.
Squirtle waddled out, toolbox clutched in his stubby arms, and jabbed a claw skyward, chattering indignantly.
I couldn't tell if he was scolding Latias for trespassing… or asking when she'd come back.